Tag Archives: F Train

A man wanted for exposing himself to a straphanger on an R train last month has now been connected to a similar public lewdness incident at a Queens subway station on Valentine’s Day, police said.

A 50-year-old woman was waiting for a Queens-bound F train at the Queens Boulevard and 63rd Drive stop in Rego Park about 5:30 a.m. on Feb. 14 when the suspect approached the victim and exposed himself to her. He then boarded an F train while the victim remained on the platform and waited for the next train.

The same man is also suspected of exposing himself to a 34-year-old woman on board a Queens-bound R train about 7:40 a.m. on March 2.

As the train was at the Grand Avenue stop in Elmhurst, the man sat down in front of the woman and allegedly exposed himself. He then got off at the next stop on Woodhaven and Queens boulevards.

Police describe the suspect as Hispanic, about 25-30 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall and 120 to 140 pounds.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Queens residents will soon have “Commuter Composting” in order to properly dispose of their household food waste, according to the Department of Sanitation (DSNY).

The DSNY is expanding its curbside organic waste recycling program and also adding 11 new food scrap drop-off locations. Residents will also see 19 more seasonal sites this summer, for a total of 64 sites throughout the city. The drop-off program offers composting opportunities for New Yorkers in neighborhoods or buildings that do not receive curbside collection of organic waste.

The “Commuter Composting” program will be offered in Ridgewood outside the Fresh Pond Road M train station, located on Fresh Pond Road near Putnam Avenue, on Wednesdays from 8 to 10 a.m.; and in Kew Gardens outside the Union Turnpike E/F train station, on Kew Gardens Road between 80th and 81st avenues, on Thursdays from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.

The collected compost will be distributed to local greening groups such as urban farmers, community gardeners and street tree stewards to improve the quality of the soil.

Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia said the program will help redirect organic material from ending up in landfills. Last week, the DSNY announced it would expand its household organics collection program in Maspeth, Middle Village and other areas of the city.

“Organic material makes up about a third of our city’s trash,” Garcia said. “We are excited to be able to provide more opportunities for New Yorkers to recycle their food waste. By increasing the number of food scrap drop-off sites, more organic material can be composted instead of going to landfills.”

The MTA’s Fastrack late-night repair and maintenance program will return to the E, F, M and R lines in Manhattan and Queens the next two weeks, causing disruptions on all four subway lines.

The disruptions will take place on four consecutive weeknights this upcoming week from Monday, March 30, through Thursday, April 2; and the following week from Monday, April 6 through early Friday morning, April 10, at the same time. All service changes will take place from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next morning.

During the disruptions, E trains will only operate in Queens between Jamaica Center and 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue. Meanwhile, F trains will operate in two sections: between Jamaica-179th Street and 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue; and between 21st Street-Queensbridge and Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue.

M trains will end service early between Essex Street in Lower Manhattan and Forest Hills-71 Avenue. During the disruptions, M trains will operate shuttle service between Metropolitan Avenue in Middle Village and Myrtle Avenue-Broadway in Bushwick.

R trains will end service early between 36th Street in Brooklyn and Forest Hills-71 Avenue. The trains will operate shuttle service in Brooklyn only between 36th Street and 95th Street.

For alternate service between Manhattan and Queens, take the 7 train, available at the 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue or Queensboro Plaza station. The N train is also available at Queensboro Plaza.

Free shuttle buses will also operate in place of trains in Queens between Queensboro Plaza and 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue, stopping at all affected stations including Queens Plaza, 36th Street, Steinway Street, 46th Street, Northern Boulevard and 65th Street.

The MTA previously disrupted service on the Queens Boulevard local and express lines in November for Fastrack maintenance. Crews cleaned debris and made repairs to station and tunnel infrastructures, signal equipment, tracks and the third rail.

A woman walking on a Forest Hills subway platform was groped and pushed to the ground by a man earlier this week, police said.

The 38-year-old victim was on the southbound F train platform at the Queens Boulevard and 75th Avenue station at about 7:40 a.m. on Tuesday when she was attacked, police said.

As the woman was walking on the platform, the suspect grabbed her from behind, touching her buttocks and private parts, before pushing her to the ground, cops said. The victim was not injured.

According to police, the suspect was last seen running east along Queens Boulevard then south on 76th Avenue, and was wearing a dark jacket and a green or possibly camouflaged hat, and carrying a dark-colored backpack. He is described as Hispanic, 5 feet 9 inches tall and has a stocky build.

Police have also released a video showing the suspect running after the attack.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

The state completed reconstruction of the Briarwood-Van Wyck subway entrance on Tuesday as part of a $265 million project to improve an area where four highways intertwine and 500,000 vehicles pass through every day.

While much of the overall project is focused on reconstructing the Van Wyck Expressway, the Commissioner for the New York State Department of Transportation called the improvements to the subway “critical” to improving commuter flow in an area known as the Kew Gardens Interchange.

“The Kew Gardens Interchange project will enhance traffic mobility, improve travel speeds and reduce travel times for the entire Van Wyck Expressway corridor and for traffic heading to and from JFK Airport,” Commissioner Joan McDonald said. “For the many residents in this area who rely on mass transit, the project also includes improved access to the Briarwood-Van Wyck subway station.”

The new subway entrance for the E and F lines features a glass and stainless steel canopy, a widened staircase, enhanced tunnel lighting and new tile walls and flooring.

Future work on the Briarwood-Van Wyck subway entrance will include new landscaping, sidewalks, concrete pavement, lighting and an elevator.

By 2016, the state hopes to complete a part of the project that would completely reconstruct a half-mile section of the Van Wyck Expressway just south of the Interchange and six bridges over the Van Wyck Expressway.

A drill struck the top of an occupied F train in Long Island City on Thursday, nearly missing the subway car, according to the MTA.

The drill, which had a 10-inch wide bit, according to published reports, was being used for a construction project involving the East Side Access project. It hit the train shortly before noon just outside of the 21st Street station.

The drill damaged the top of the car, but did not enter it, the transit agency said. No one was injured.

About 800 riders, who were on the train, had to be taken off and led back to the station.

Police are looking for two men wanted in a string of robberies on the F train in Queens, where they punch their victims as they try to take their property.

The first theft took place at the 169th Street stop on Sept. 2 at about 4:10 a.m. A 23-year-old man was walking up the stairs of the subway station when two men grabbed him from behind, authorities said. The suspects threw the victim to the ground, punched him in the face and took his wallet from his back pocket. The suspects then fled.

On Sept. 30, at about 9 a.m., a 30-year-old man was on a northbound F train when he was approached by two men, police said. One of the men punched the victim in the face and demanded his iPad. When the victim exited the train at the Sutphin Boulevard station, the suspects followed him, but fled without stealing anything.

During the latest incident, on Oct. 8, at about 1:40 p.m., the two suspects targeted a 33-year-old man as he was sitting on a southbound F train, according to authorities. The train was stopped at the Parsons Boulevard stop when one of the suspects grabbed the victim’s cellphone from his hand and fled. When the victim tried to chase him, a second man punched the victim in the face.

Police have released a video of the suspects and described them as two Hispanic men in their 20s.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Several passengers who were on the subway train that derailed in Woodside this May are planning on suing the city for millions, claiming the accident left them traumatized and injured, according to a published report.

Queens resident Monifah Kidd filed a notice of claim shortly after the derailment, saying she still suffers from nightmares, the New York Post said. Kidd, who is planning to sue for $5 million, is also reportedly claiming she was left with permanent neck, back and head injuries.

A total of 29 people have filed notices of claim so far, the Post reported.

Those claimants also include a Little Neck lawyer who suffers from neck, back, leg and arm pain, and another Queens resident who claims she was left disabled and is planning to sue for $10 million, the Post said.

A Hunter College student from Queens filed a notice of claim last month, according to published reports, after the subway accident left her with panic attacks.

In the May 2 derailment, 19 people were hurt when the six center cars of an eight-car F train went off the express track near 65th Street and Broadway. Of those hurt, 15 suffered minor injuries and four were taken to the hospital.

Starting Monday, July 21, there will be service disruptions on the E, F, M and R lines between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. in Queens and Manhattan for four consecutive weeknights, as part of the MTA’s Fastrack maintenance program:

E service will be suspended between Roosevelt Avenue and World Trade Center.

F service will be suspended between Roosevelt Avenue and 21 Street-Queensbridge.

M service will end early between 71 Avenue and Essex Street each night.

R service will end early between 71 Avenue and Whitehall Street each night.

Travel alternatives

Take the 7 between Manhattan and 74 St-Roosevelt Avenue or Queensboro Plaza.

Take the R between Queens Plaza and 71 Avenue. When R service ends, E trains run local between Queens Plaza and 71 Avenue until 10 p.m. After 10 PM, take the E Local between Roosevelt Avenue and 71 Avenue.

In Manhattan along 8th Avenue, take the A Local or C instead of the E.

The May subway derailment in Woodside, which injured 19 people and forced about 1,000 straphangers to evacuate, was not caused by the broken rail initially discovered by the MTA, according to a published report.

Although a preliminary investigation found that the rail had broken under the Brooklyn-bound F train, investigators are now suspecting that the derailment occurred from a sequence and combination of “other relatively minor substandard site and track-equipment conditions,” according to the New York Daily News.

Sources told the Daily News that investigators were looking at items such as rail fasteners, rail ties and plates.

The F train was on the express track when the six center cars of the eight-car train derailed, officials said. Of those 19 injured, 15 suffered minor injuries and four were taken to the hospital with potentially serious injuries.

According to published reports, the rail section was made by a longtime supplier for the MTA, and was installed after a “hairline crack” was found at the derailment location.

Rail manufactured from the same batch has been installed at other locations, and the transit agency is trying to figure out where those rail sections are and their condition, reports said.

In a May release, the MTA emphasized its safety record, as well as track and other maintenance efforts, and said the city’s subway system has experienced only 17 mainline derailments in the last decade.

The number of MTA electronic alerts cautioning riders about subway delays has jumped in the city, with the F train showing the most incidents in 2013, according to transit advocacy group Straphangers Campaign.

The group’s analysis found that the amount of alerts on delay-generating incidents went from 2,967 in 2011 to 3,998 in 2013, an increase of 35 percent.

“The increase in alerts is a troubling sign that subway service is deteriorating,” said Gene Russianoff, staff attorney for the Straphangers Campaign.

The analysis, which looked at 20 subway lines, but not any of the shuttles, examined only alerts that were deemed “controllable,” excluding incidents such as sick passengers and police activity. Data from 2012 was also eliminated because of Superstorm Sandy’s effect on the numbers.

The J/Z line had the fewest with 53 incidents. It was also the most improved line, with 9 percent fewer delay alerts between 2011 and 2013, and was also the only one to experience a reduction in delay alerts during that period.

The L line experienced the largest increase from 2011 to 2013, going from 96 to 183 delay alerts.

Despite the spike in alerts, Queens fared well compared to the other boroughs.

Queens had the second fewest delay-generating controllable incidents in 2013, with 604. The Bronx had the fewest, with 416. Queens also showed the smallest jump in alerts out of the four boroughs that the subways serve, going from 489 in 2011 to 604 in 2013, a 24 percent change.

Citywide, mechanical problems generated the most alerts and accounted for about 35 percent of them, followed by signals at 31 percent and track incidents at 13 percent.

The MTA has been issuing electronic alerts to riders via email and text message since November 2008. To sign up for the free service, visit www.mymtaalerts.com.

As transit service returns to normal following a subway derailment in Woodside Friday, the MTA continues to investigate the derailment and why a section of rail at the accident site broke.

A preliminary investigation has found that the broken rail that was discovered where the train derailed was manufactured last November and installed this March, the MTA said.

“The MTA has not determined how or why the rail broke. Speed or human error do not appear to be a factor [in the derailment],” MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz said.

The broken rail section will be sent for testing as the investigation into the derailment’s cause continues.

In a release Saturday, the transit agency emphasized its safety record, and track and other maintenance efforts, and said the city’s subway system has experienced only 17 mainline derailments in the last decade.

Crews spent the weekend removing the subway train that derailed about 10:25 a.m. Friday just south of the 65th and Broadway R and M local stop. By 5 a.m. Monday E, F, M and R service, which had been affected by the accident, had returned to normal along the Queens Boulevard line.

The Brooklyn-bound F train was on the express track when the six center cars of the eight-car train derailed, injuring 19 and forcing about a 1,000 riders to evacuate, officials said. Of those hurt, 15 suffered minor injuries and four were taken to the hospital with potentially serious injuries.

The accident happened about 10:25 a.m. on the Brooklyn-bound express track near 65th Street and Broadway, the MTA said.

As the subway passed just south of the local R/M station, the six center cars of the eight-car train went off the tracks, according to the transit agency.

Photo: MTA / Patrick Cashin

It took about two hours to evacuate about 1,000 passengers. Fifteen people suffered minor injuries and four were taken to the hospital with potentially serious injuries, officials said.

The derailment also caused damage to the tracks and car equipment as well as delays and service changes across several lines, according to the agency.

There will be a detailed investigation into the cause of the derailment, including an examination of the tracks, signals and maintenance records, MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas F. Prendergast said at a briefing on the accident Friday afternoon.

Photo: Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit

“We run 8,000 trains a day and the system is very safe,” he said.

Riders should expect to continue to experience service changes as a result of the derailment. The MTA was able to restore local E and F service by the Friday evening rush hour, but express service remains suspended in both directions along the Queens Boulevard line until after the derailed train is removed from the tracks, according to the agency.

The M and R trains will not run along the Queens Boulevard line.

R trains will run between Whitehall St and 57 St-7 Av in Manhattan.

M trains will run between Metropolitan Av in Queens and Chambers St in Manhattan.

LIRR is cross-honoring valid MetroCards in both directions between Penn Station and Jamaica Station, including Kew Gardens, Forest Hills and Woodside, as well as stops between Atlantic Terminal and Jamaica.

All service will be suspended along the Queens Boulevard line from 10 p.m. Friday to 7 a.m. Saturday for the removal of the derailed train. Limited shuttle bus service will be provided but customers should use the 7 train as an alternate for some stops along the Queens Boulevard line or the MTA Long Island Rail Road.

Weekend construction work on the M, 7 and J lines has been canceled.

The MTA said there is no timetable for restoration of express service on the Queens Boulevard line.

The victim received minor injuries as a result of the attack, officials said.

Police have released a photo of the woman wanted in the assault and describe her as about 5 feet 1 inch tall.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Starting Monday night, there will be service disruptions on the E, F, M and R lines between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. in Queens and Manhattan for four consecutive weeknights, as part of the MTA’s Fastrack maintenance program:

E service will be suspended between Roosevelt Avenue and World Trade Center.

F service will be suspended between Roosevelt Avenue and 21 Street-Queensbridge.

M service will end early between 71 Avenue and Essex Street each night.

R service will end early between 71 Avenue and Whitehall Street each night.

Travel alternatives

Take the 7 between Manhattan and 74 St/Roosevelt Av or Queensboro Plaza.

Take the R between Queens Plaza and 71 Avenue. When R service ends, E trains run local between Queens Plaza and 71 Avenue until 10 p.m. After 10 PM, take the E Local between Roosevelt Avenue and 71 Avenue.

In Manhattan along 8th Avenue, take the A Local or C instead of the E.